Verona Ristorante — Restaurant in Haddonfield

What an purely awesome unexpected Monday night! My girlfriend Lisa and myself were strolling through Haddonfield and noticed that most restaurants we closed. As I approached Verona it had occurred to me they I’d not noticed it before, however it really got my attention and quickly asked Lisa if she’d like to have dinner there. Lisa being an Italian American said yes immediately. We went in and the maître d’ sat us at an available table for two. We notice the ambiance was rich with traditional music and the paintings on the wall were also tasteful. I forgot instantly that I was in haddonfield and it really felt like I was in Italy for a second. One waiter came and got our drink order. We both had water. And said he’d be back with some bread, he spoke wit an Italian accent. Another waiter approached and this fellow had a British accent. Being Irish I can usually pin where In England he would have come from, but was unable as he was very soft spoken. His name was Jordan and he let us know the specials and gave us time to think. He returned with the water and the bread and asked if we had decided. We had and ordered. Lisa had the Risotto Capesante off the menu and they had some specials that evening which included Bronzino soup and chicken Marsala and that’s what I chose. When the soup came it was excellent. It was a broth with carrots and celery finely diced and plenty of small chunks of Bronzino. It was perfectly seasoned, extremely tasty. The main course followed, appropriately timed and the presentation was simple but appetizing. They serve the sides à la cart and I’d forgotten to order one. I asked Jordan if they had potato to which he replied, “yes roasted red bliss.” I asked if it was too late to get that, he replied “no”, and went off to get that after leaving us with fresh Parmesan cheese and he’d fresh peppering my chicken. Lisa’s dish with the scallops was an excellent presentation, it looked and was delicious. My Marsala was second to none and I eat it a lot being one of my favorite Italian dishes. It being Monday we enjoyed our food immensely and we were trying to be good and passed on desert. Jordon went off the get the check and when he came back I settled it quickly and I told him again the food was excellent. He came back with the slip for me to sign and told us that the chef had a treat for us and not to leave. After a time he came back with two flutes with cherrys and lemonchello on top of which was a wafer and on top of that was a cannoli. It was a beautiful romantic presentation and for my beautiful girl Lisa, who said one of the nicest things anyone has ever said to me, it was a lovely treat for both of us. We were very excited. I saw the chef peeking his head out and waved him over to thank him. Arthur, the chef, was so gracious host and thanked us for our patronage. What a really uneventful night turned in to such a magnificent one. Thank you so much Arthur and Jordan. Everyone should...

I had one of the most disappointing dining experiences I’ve ever had at Verona — made even more frustrating by the fact that I had such high expectations based on the glowing reviews about the food and service.

I was visiting from Tampa and excited to try Verona while in town. My local friend made a reservation in advance, but when we arrived, we were seated next door at Pizza Pazza with no explanation. Unfortunately, from that point forward, the night continued to go downhill.

Our server, Doni G., was inattentive and disengaged. He didn’t ask if we wanted anything to drink, didn’t mention the specials (which sounded amazing when offered to the table next to us), and forgot to put in our orders. The salads eventually arrived only because a food runner came in from outside saying she had been looking for us — apparently due to the wrong table number being assigned.

While the salads were fine, we then waited over an hour for our entrees, with no check-in or updates at all. We finally had to flag down the hostess to ask what was going on. At that point, a table that had been seated after us had already finished their entrees, dessert, and were waiting on the check.

When our food finally came, the delay was blamed on one dish (Stinco D' Agnello Arrosto) taking longer to prepare — something that was never mentioned when we ordered. I’ve worked in restaurants, and I know that communication like this is essential. It was clear that our meals had not been fired properly, which was also noted on the final check.

To make matters worse, I became physically ill from the food and spent most of the night in the bathroom. What was supposed to be a special dinner with friends ended up being uncomfortable and upsetting. I’m still experiencing stomach pain as I write this.

Toward the end of the night, the support staff — who were clearly trying to recover what had become an awful experience — offered us dessert. Based on how it was presented, we assumed it was being comped. It wasn’t. The dessert was added to our check. When we expressed our frustration, a staff member brought a revised bill with a “family discount” of about 10% off. We then had to dispute that bill as well, and while they did remove part of the dessert, they also removed the the “family discount”, and we were still charged for a dessert I never would have ordered had I known it wasn’t being comped — especially after getting sick from the meal.

At that point, I was in too much discomfort to argue further. I just paid and left.

I’ve never wanted to leave a restaurant so quickly. While I appreciate the effort of the support staff who stepped in, the experience as a whole was completely mismanaged. The lack of attention, accountability, and basic communication made for an incredibly disappointing and unpleasant night.

I would not return or recommend based on...

We walked up to this little restaurant with large store front windows. We arrived just as they opened, we had reservations. We were immediately greeted by multiple staff members. The staff there had a way of making you feel like family. We were sat at a table away from the door, they noticed we were cold.

We started our dinner with glasses of water and a basket of bread with a garlic aoli spread which was delicious. Our server, Ari, overheard how much we enjoyed the spread and brought us a small container to take home. It was the little things like that which made this an experience.

They provide bottle service for wine. We did order a bottle, however I am far from a sommelier, so I won't comment on the wine.

We moved to our first course, my wife had the shrimp bisque, my son had the tortellini soup and I enjoyed the apple pear arugula salad with prosciutto and Buffalo mozzarella . We didn't get pics of those, we were pretty hungry, lol. My salad was delicious and was large enough to share with my daughter. It was dressed perfectly and the pairing of the pear dressing was fantastic.

Following was the entree. I had the Orecchiette Barese, my wife had the Risotto Boscaiola, and both of my kids ordered the gnocchi, all pictured below. The beauty in these dishes were their simplicity. The gnocchi was soft and delicate. My orecchiette had broccoli Rabe and hot sausage in a white wine and garlic sauce. Simple and delicious! My wife enjoyed the risotto as well.

For dessert, we shared two tiramisu and coffee for the table. The were fantastic. Light creamy and delicious.

Finally, I would be remiss if I did not mention the service. The service was outstanding. Ari was attentive and courteous. Even as other diners came rolling in, he and the other servers never missed a beat. Refilling our water, cleaning the dishes or providing more bread for that delicious aoli spread. At the end of service, we were treated to an amaretto digestif. The service was stellar and really made the experience exponentially better.

In the end, this restaurant was fantastic. We paid over 200 dollars for the 4 of us, but you get what you pay for. Especially in this case, it was well worth the money. If someone is looking for an upscale Rustic Italian dining experience, this place will definitely fit the bill.

A special thank you to Verona Ristorante for making my daughter's graduation dinner a...